By Damon Linker, The Week
Six months ago, it looked like Joe Biden’s presidency was off to a strong start. Though the presidential election was closer than most polls had predicted, Biden ran ahead of congressional Democrats. The new president and his party managed to pass the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan less than two months after Inauguration Day, despite razor-thin margins in both houses of Congress. The administration did a good job of making several highly effective vaccines against COVID-19 widely available. And Biden announced the coming withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan, fulfilling a campaign promise strongly backed by public opinion. For all of this, the new president was rewarded with approval ratings in the low-to-mid-50s.
Then came the chaotic execution of the Afghanistan exit from late July through the end of August. That sent Biden’s numbers off a cliff, and they’ve never recovered.
Presidential success or failure in Washington is a function of narratives. When a good one takes hold, with a series of positive stories seeming to reinforce it, a president’s approval rises or stays steady. But when something goes wrong and appears to be followed by events that demonstrate a pattern of ineptitude, support can collapse.
